LIFTED EYES MEDIA

COMPELLING Stories about real people

ABOUT

Lifted Eyes Media (LEM) is a Toronto-based production company that creates documentary films. We specialize in telling compelling stories about real people. The topics we cover are challenging and we work tirelessly to craft engaging content that tell these stories through personal narratives. Our approach is rooted in the belief that the most powerful films explore complex issues through the eyes of those who have lived them.

Founder

Founder

Lisa Rideout

Lisa Rideout works as a documentary film and commercial director. She founded Lifted Eyes Media in 2013. In 2017, Lisa helped establish Fringe Creative a commercial production company which creates story centric branded content. From 2013-2015 Lisa worked in the production office at the Canadian Film Centre (CFC). During her time at the CFC, she helped produce over 150 narrative shorts, becoming intimately familiar with film production.

Lisa received her MFA in Documentary Media from Ryerson University in Toronto, ON and her MA in Critical Media and Cultural Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, UK.

WORK

Lisa’s films focus on narratives that are character driven and use first person POV. Her approach is grounded in the belief that the most powerful films explore complex social issues through the eyes of those who have lived them. She founded Lifted Eyes Media in 2013 to make films with this aim.

After a decade as a sex worker, Iman attempts to pursue her dream of becoming a social worker to help her fellow transgender community members. As she explores the option of going back to college, One Leg In, One Leg Out questions whether tenacity, ambition and a life long dream are enough to overcome one’s situation.

Produced in association with Bravofactual, Bell Media, Clique Pictures

Opening the doors to one of Toronto’s oldest cross-dressing stores, viewers get a glimpse into the colourful lives of its customers and their tender relationships with the eccentric storeowner, revealing that Wildside continues to play a vital role for Toronto’s cross-dressing community.

2018 Canadian Screen Award Winner, Best Short Documentary

2017 Austin Film Festival, Official Competition, Austin, US, Finalist Best Documentary Short

2017 St. Louis International Film Festival, Official Competition, St. Louis, US, Finalist Best Documentary Short

2017 Reeling: The Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival, Chicago, US

His Nose, Her Eyes, Whose Face? combines stop motion and interviews to begin a conversation about the complexities of being mixed race.

Being half of one thing and half of something else means you are not enough of either – a confusing and unsettling place to navigate. His Nose, Her Eyes, Whose Face? questions who has the power to influence how you define yourself when determining your identity is a deeply personal journey.

Act Three is a film about well-known transgender activist Susan Gapka. By exploring her tumultuous childhood and the ten years she spent homeless in Toronto, the film examines what has motivated Susan to dedicate her life to her campaign for social justice while following Susan in her current journey as she tries to make peace with her past mistakes.

John Letnick or “Captain John” gained notoriety in Toronto after opening the first floating restaurant in 1970, under the name of Captain John’s Seafood Restaurant. His restaurant enjoyed decades of success, before its doors were forced shut by the city due to unpaid taxes. What Remains is an exploration into Letnick’s loss. The film looks at both the triumphs and regrets that come with a long-lived life.

St. Anne's Place is an independent living centre for seniors with mental and physical disabilities in Toronto, Canada. I'll Be Home looks at the ways in which one of its residents Faye, has been able to overcome her painful experiences and create a home within the walls of St. Anne’s Place.

"I remember that some of the advice was about how not to pitch people. That’s important. Don’t pitch people when it’s not the right time. Have conversations with them. Don’t always try to sell your film — you have to build these relationships with broadcasters."